Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen (TV series episode)
Goodbye, Farewell and Amen is a television movie that served as the final episode of the M*A*S*H television series. Closing out the series' 11th season, the 2½-hour episode first aired on CBS on February 28, 1983. Written by a large number of collaborators, including series star Alan Alda, who also directed, the finale surpassed the single-episode ratings record that had been set by the Dallas episode that resolved the "Who Shot J.R.?" cliffhanger. From 1983 until 2010, "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen" remained the most watched television broadcast in American history, passed in total viewership (but not in Ratings or Share) in February 2010 by Super Bowl XLIV. The episode drew 121.6 million American viewers, more than both that year's Super Bowl and the famed Roots miniseries, and remains the most watched finale of any television series. While the M*A*S*H series ended with this episode, three of the series' main characters (Sherman Potter, Maxwell Klinger, and Father Mulcahy) would later reunite in the 1983–1985 sequel series AfterMASH. The episode's plot chronicles the final days of the Korean War at the 4077th MASH and features several story lines intended to show the war's effects on the individual personnel of the unit, and to bring closure to the series. After the cease fire goes into effect, the members of the 4077th throw a farewell party before breaking camp for the last time. A repeat of GFA on September 19, 1983 was appropriately the last official telecast of M*A*S*H to air on CBS; the finale was rebroadcast again September 16, 1984. The episode was added to the syndication package for the series in 1993. Plot The Korean War is finally nearing an end, and Hawkeye, having had some kind of mental breakdown, is in Seoul being treated by Sidney Freedman. Hawkeye's memories of what led to his breakdown have become repressed or altered, and as he and Sidney draw them forth, Hawkeye initially remembers the details inaccurately. In his first recollection, Hawkeye and most of the rest of the camp went to the beach at Incheon to celebrate the Fourth of July. On their way back to camp, Hawkeye joyously called for a liquor bottle to be passed back to someone who “can’t wait”; later, he is able to more accurately remember that the person who couldn't wait was a wounded soldier, and that the bottle was an I-V bottle. When asked where the soldier came from, Hawkeye remembers that on the way back from the beach, the bus stopped to pick up some South Korean refugees, and then some wounded soldiers who brought news of an enemy patrol in the area. The bus pulled off the road into a grove of bushes, and everyone is told to stay completely quiet to avoid being spotted by the enemy. One woman, a local, carried a live chicken that began clucking loudly, prompting Hawkeye to angrily admonish her (in a hushed voice) to “keep that damned chicken quiet!”; moments later, the noise abruptly stopped. With Sidney's prompting, Hawkeye begins to recall the correct details of what happened: It turned out that it was not a chicken, but a baby; unable to keep it from crying, the woman made the ad hoc decision to smother her own child to silence it and protect her life and the lives of the others on the bus. Hawkeye was so inwardly traumatized by this that he suppressed the memory of what actually occurred. After they returned to camp, he attempted to operate on a patient without anesthesia, while accusing the anesthesiologist of trying to smother the patient with the mask. But it was a later incident--driving a jeep through the wall of the Officers' Club and then uncharacteristically ordering a double bourbon --that caused Hawkeye to be committed to the mental hospital. When he accurately recalled what happened on the bus, a horrified Hawkeye broke down in sobs saying, "I didn't mean for her to kill it! I just wanted it to be quiet!" He then quietly rebuked Sidney for making him remember what actually happened, to which Sidney replied, "You had to get it out in the open." With the true memory of the events on the bus restored to his consciousness, Hawkeye acknowledges the fact that he suffered a nervous breakdown, and was in the process of writing his father that he might be coming home soon as he doubted the Army would let a surgeon operate "whose cheese has slipped off his cracker." But Sidney, deciding that he is ready to be released, sends a dubious Hawkeye back to the 4077th, promising to check up on him periodically. Back at the 4077th, an out-of-control tank runs over the camp latrine, forcing Charles to go to a temporary facility down the road to relieve himself. Encountering a rag-tag group of five Chinese soldiers on a motorcycle, he is surprised when they “surrender”, but even more surprised when they reveal that they're actually musicians. Playing "Oh Susanna" on the way, the five Chinese follow a chagrined Charles back to camp. B.J. then takes possession of the motorcycle and later annoys Charles by painting it yellow. Irritated that he is about to miss his chance to win a coveted position at a hospital in Boston, Charles consoles himself by conducting the Chinese musicians in rehearsals of one of his favorite Mozart pieces (the first movement of the Clarinet Quintet in A, K. 581). On the surface, he is irritated with them over their inability to play the piece correctly, but he is actually bonding with and growing quite fond of them. Margaret learns of his situation back home and puts in a good word with the Boston hospital's board, but her efforts only earn Charles' indignation when he finds out. With the crashed tank still in the camp and Potter under orders not to have it moved for the time being, enemy forces begin a mortar assault against the 4077th. During one barrage, Father Mulcahy runs to open a makeshift prisoners' pen in the compound in which several POWs are being kept. A mortar round explodes nearby, knocking Mulcahy out and leaving him with a severe hearing loss (later revealed to be caused by tinnitus). Only B.J. knows about Mulcahy's condition, and Mulcahy begs him not to tell anyone else, as it could result in his being sent home, unable to help the local orphans. Shortly before Hawkeye returns from the mental hospital, B.J. receives his discharge papers and joyously leaves for home. Just as the chopper takes off, Klinger informs Potter that B.J.'s discharge has been rescinded, but Potter cannot (by choice) hear Klinger over the chopper. The shorthanded operating-room staff are soon swamped with patients, and Potter calls I-Corps to expedite a replacement. Hawkeye, arriving after Hunnicutt's departure, is upset that his roommate left without saying goodbye (much as his old friend Trapper John had). Shortly afterward, during another barrage of enemy shelling, Hawkeye decides to take matters in his own hands and drives the crashed tank through the newly-built latrine and into the camp's garbage dump, far enough away from the camp where the shelling won't hurt anyone. Most of the camp is relieved that they are now out of harm's way, but Margaret, Mulcahy, and Potter begin to wonder if Hawkeye might have been released too soon, so Potter calls Sidney in to pay a visit. In the meantime, Soon-Lee Han, a Korean refugee from a previous episode, is still in camp and trying to locate her misplaced family. Klinger becomes worried when he learns that she has gone off on her own to find them; when he catches up with her, they both realize that they have feelings for one another. Later, Klinger proposes to her, and she accepts; Klinger regales her with how much she'll love living in Toledo, but much to his frustration, Soon-Lee insists that she cannot and will not leave Korea until she finds her family. A salvo of incendiary bombs causes a fire in a nearby forest, and the 4077th is forced to "bug out" (a well-rehearsed evacuation order). As soon as the camp is up and running again in its new location, the new replacement surgeon arrives, and it turns out to be B.J., who only got as far as Guam before finding out about his rescinded discharge. Reuniting with Hawkeye, B.J. apologetically explains that everything happened so fast that he had no time to leave a note. Mulcahy and B.J., who longed to be home in time for his daughter Erin's second birthday, decide to invite the orphanage to a big party, during which Potter, Mulcahy and Margaret decided to have a "birthday by proxy"; they found an orphan girl close to two years old and declared it to be her birthday as well as Erin's, causing B.J. to remark, "What better birthday present to get than your own birthday". Seeing all the children at the party, Hawkeye becomes withdrawn and tries to slip away, but Sidney, who shows up during the festivities, reassures him. He considers Hawkeye's moving of the tank to be a sensible action that took his fellow soldiers out of danger. Hawkeye opens up about his feelings about the thought of losing a patient under his care, which never bothered him as much before; Freedman says it may make him an even better doctor than he already is. Charles eventually has to say goodbye to the Chinese musicians, who are to be part of a POW exchange. As they are driven away, they finally play the Mozart piece correctly for him. At that moment, the PA announces the news that the armistice has finally been signed, and a cease-fire will go into effect at 2200 hours that night, officially ending the war. A loud cheer goes up in the camp, but the celebration is very short-lived as more wounded arrive, and Potter announces to everyone that I-Corps wants them back in Uijeongbu right away, so only the patients that cannot wait get first priority before they move back. Back at their old site, everyone takes a long sobering look at all the fire damage before they go back to work; much of the equipment left behind was destroyed, but somehow the hospital building itself was largely undamaged. The camp again sets up shop and gets to work on the remaining wounded they brought back. With less than six hours left before the ceasefire takes effect, Hawkeye and B.J. take a break in the Mess Tent and discuss many of the things they're not going to miss, but then they get around to what they will miss: each other. B.J. tries to reassure Hawkeye that they'll still get to see one another back home, but with each of them living on an opposite coast, Hawkeye doesn't see how and becomes convinced that once they go home they'll never see one another again. B.J., however, cannot bring himself to accept that finality. Charles goes to do triage on more wounded that have arrived in camp, among which, to his horror, is one of the musicians, near death after the truck carrying the POWs was shelled. After he is informed that none of the others survived. A shaken Charles retires to his tent, where he plays a record of the Mozart piece they were rehearsing, but this only intensifies his pain, and he angrily yanks the record from the turntable and smashes it to pieces. In the OR, Hawkeye's next patient is brought in: an eight-year-old girl. Hawkeye is hesitant at first, but when Potter offers to switch patients with him, he declines and goes to work, indicating that his recovery is complete. Sidney, his work now finished, leaves the 4077th with the same parting line he used during one of his earliest visits: “Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice: pull down your pants and slide on the ice.” The staff continues operating throughout the night, stopping only briefly to take note when 10:00 PM comes, and the guns fall silent as heard in a radio newscast over the loudspeaker with reporter Robert Pierpoint accenting the ceasefire with the words: "There it is.. That's the sound of peace." Once all the wounded have been cared for, the staff throw a final party in the mess tent, with many members commenting on their future plans: * Potter looks forward to rejoining his wife in Missouri and becoming a “semi-retired country doctor”, but even more so becoming "Mrs. Potter's Mister ''Potter". * Margaret has rejected several overseas postings in favor of working at a big-city hospital in the United States. * Father Mulcahy decides to begin ministering to the deaf. * Kellye has put in to be assigned to Tripler Army Hospital in Honolulu to be with her family. * Rizzo is going back home to Louisiana to breed frogs for French restaurants. * Hawkeye wants to take some time off, then go back into private practice in Maine, where he can get to know his patients better. * Igor is going to be a pig farmer (which earns a remark from Rizzo: "Whaddaya mean, ''gonna ''be??"). * B.J. jokes about running off with a woman he met in Guam during his travel delay, but then admits he was only kidding. * Charles, having gotten the position he sought at Boston Mercy, says "My life will go on as expected," but adds that the music that he had loved and used as a refuge from the experience will now serve as a painful reminder of the war. * The biggest surprise of all comes from Klinger who, after announcing he and Soon-Lee are getting married, reveals that he is staying in Korea to help her find her family. The next morning, Klinger and Soon-Lee are married by Father Mulcahy, with Potter as best man, and Margaret as maid of honor. After the ceremony, Klinger is the first to say his goodbyes, especially to Colonel Potter, and then boards an ox cart with Soon-Lee; as they ride away, the nurses shout at Soon-Lee to throw her bouquet of flowers, which she does, and Margaret catches it. As camp is being permanently dismantled, Rizzo gives a boarding call for the 8063rd, and as they make their way to the bus, Kellye decides she's going to take her road sign with her, and everyone else grabs a sign off the long-standing signpost (the only two remaining are Tokyo and Seoul), and most of the staff (including all the nurses) board the bus and ride out from camp for the last time. Charles and Margaret intended to ride together to the 8063rd, a stopover on the way back to the States, but Charles cannot find room in Margaret's jeep, so he sends Rizzo to get him another ride; he then makes peace with her and allows her to keep a treasured book she borrowed from him. Just before leaving the camp, Margaret receives hugs from various members of the unit and also engages in a long, passionate goodbye kiss with Hawkeye. After Margaret leaves, the Swamp is dismantled as its former occupants gleefully laugh at its demise. The last available vehicle is a garbage truck, which Charles boards after saying goodbye. Potter plans to take one final ride on his beloved horse Sophie before he donates her to the local orphanage, and take a jeep from there. He reflects on how Hawkeye and B.J. always managed to give him a good laugh when he needed it (particularly when they dropped Charles' pants in "Bottoms Up"), admitting that he was only pretending to be angry while inwardly "laughing to beat all hell." As Potter climbs on his horse, Hawkeye and Hunnicutt offer him a small token gift from the heart: a formal military salute, which Potter emotionally returns before he rides off. With everyone else now gone, Hawkeye and B.J. are finding it all the more difficult to part ways. As they reminisce over their time together, Hawkeye tries to agree with B.J. that they might see one another again, but in case they don't, Hawkeye tells B.J. how much he has meant to him, to which B.J. responds, "I can't ''imagine what this place would have been like if I hadn't found you here." The two exchange a long brotherly embrace before Hawkeye boards a chopper. Right before B.J. leaves on his motorcycle, he shouts to Hawkeye that they will see each other back home, and that this time he left Hawkeye a note. Only after Hawkeye's helicopter has lifted off does he see B.J.'s note: he smiles as he sees the word "GOODBYE" spelled out in stones on the ground. A content Benjamin Franklin Pierce, M.D., then sits back and relaxes as he is choppered away from the now-deserted 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital right back to where he came from: Crabapple Cove, Maine. Recurring Cast/Guest stars *Rosalind Chao as Soon-Lee *Allan Arbus as Major Sidney Freedman *Kellye Nakahara as Lieutenant Kellye Yamoto *John Otrin as Ambulance Driver *Jeff Maxwell as Igor Straminsky *Roy Goldman as Private Roy Goldman *Jim Lau as Chinese Musician *Jan Jorden as Lieutenant Baker *Jo Ann Thompson as Nurse Jo Ann *Enid Kent as Nurse Bigelow *Judy Farrell as Nurse Able *Gwen Farrell as Nurse Gwen *G.W. Bailey as Sgt. Luthor Rizzo Trivia * For the third time in the whole series the 4077th bugs out. In fact the footage of the camp bugging out was taken from the season 5 episode "Bug Out." It was wisely edited to not show Hawkeye, Radar, and Klinger in a dress, since by that point he had stopped. New music also added along with some new dubbed voices to make it seem fresh. * Hawkeye and Margaret's final kiss lasts 34 seconds. * This is the only episode of the series to feature the episode title superimposed on-screen. * Alan Alda and Loretta Swit are the only regulars to appear in both the 1972 pilot episode and 1983 finale of the series. However, Alda is the only series regular to be in each and every episode of the series (251 episodes spanning 11 years). Swit appeared in all but 11 episodes of the series. * Klinger reveals to have an Uncle Jameel, referencing Jamie Farr's birth name: Jameel Joseph Farah. * Ironically, the idea to have Klinger voluntarily stay in Korea in the final episode was suggested by Jamie Farr himself. * This has the most writers credited for a single episode in the entire series' run: eight. * This is the only time opening theme song "Suicide is Painless" is then played in its entirety throughout the closing credit sequence instead of the standard closing theme. *The wildfire story line was written into the show after an actual wildfire destroyed most of the outdoor set in October 1982. The scene was filmed less than 12 hours after the fire had ravaged the set. In November 2018, the Woolsey Fire again swept through the area, now a State Park. *David Ogden Stiers, who played Charles Emerson Winchester III, was always a little detached from the rest of the cast. Unlike the others, no one had his direct phone number, so when he had to be reached, it was through a message with his agent. In one of the key scenes of Charles' farewell, he gives Margaret the book of poetry they argued about earlier and he has signed it - the inscription is actually to his co-star Loretta Swit, and it includes his phone number. Her reaction is genuine. Quotes (after Winchester returns to camp with the Chinese musicians in tow) * Potter: 'Major, I think there's a definite ''medal ''in capturing five Chinese in your bathrobe! * ''(Charles scoffs at Potter's remark) (after breaking down in sobs when he remembered the chicken was actually a baby) * 'Hawkeye: '''You son of a bitch. Why did you make me remember that? * '''Sidney: '''You had to get it out in the open. Now we're halfway home. ''(after nearly getting hit by a passing jeep) * '''Mulcahy: Dear Lord, I know there must be a reason for this, but what is it?! I answered the call to do Your Work. I've devoted my life to it, and now, how am I supposed to do it? What good am I now? What good is a deaf priest? I pray to You to help me, and every day I get worse. Are You deaf, too?! scene of the series : Hawkeye: Look, I know how tough it is for you to say goodbye, so I'll say it. Maybe you're right, maybe we will see each other again; but just in case we don't, I want you to know how much you've meant to me. I'll never be able to shake you. Whenever I see a pair of big feet or a cheesy mustache, I'll think of you. : B. J.: Whenever I smell month-old socks, I'll think of you. : Hawkeye: Or the next time somebody nails my shoe to the floor... : B. J.: ...or when somebody gives me a martini that tastes like lighter fluid. : Hawkeye: I'll miss you. : B. J.: I'll miss you. A lot. I can't imagine what this place would've been like if I hadn't found you here. two men hug, then Hawkeye boards the helicopter while B. J. mounts his motorcycle, where he shouts over the helicopter ''I'll see you back in the States—I ''promise! But just in case, I left you a note! : Hawkeye: What?! : J. rides off. Hawkeye gives the pilot the thumbs-up to take off. As the helicopter ascends, Hawkeye looks down and smiles as he sees a message spelled in stones: GOODBYE References External links Category:Season 11 episodes